Harder Than A Wolf Bite
by katyedavis
Summary: What do new things, change, being ordinary, and Draco Malfoy have in common? They are things Hermione strongly detests.


**A/N: This is for the Quidditch Fan Fiction Competition and I am Chaser #1 of the Wimbourne Wasps. We had to write about a potion that was given specifically to us and my potion is listed below. Enjoy you guys!**

 **Potion: Wolfsbane**

 **Prompts Used:  
#2: (word) raindrops  
#4: (color) olive  
#11: (word) special**

 **Harder Than a Wolf Bite**

Hermione had a rather uneventful morning. She usually had a quiet start to her day with a cup of pumpkin juice while she read a few pages out of her potions book. Instead, she enjoyed a cup of pumpkin juice with the raindrops that fell against her window pane. Her fifth year at Hogwarts was not a year for slacking but the word 'slack' was never in her vocabulary.

Therefore, Hermione had a rather uneventful morning until her very first class of the day. Like she always does, she unpacks her bag in the usual routine: fresh parchment, potions book, inkwell, and her favorite quill that she always considered her lucky quill. It was quite special to her for the reason that it was the very first thing she bought when she shopped at Diagon Alley for the first time. The seats filled quickly around her but she hardly ever noticed. On this particular morning they had filled up quicker than usual.

The students were talking amongst themselves and Hermione just fiddled with the edge of her nearly straight parchment. She was quite annoyed that it was misshapen. In fact, it was almost intolerable that the edge was crinkled. Although, she was just trying to find some distraction to keep her from thinking about the patronizing platinum blonde haired git that resided in the seat next to hers. Apparently, all the other desks were full. Hermione knew she should have paid more attention to seating arrangements.

"We're going to try something new," Snape informed, monotonously.

New? No, Hermione hated new. She despised new. She loathed her new sitting position near this prick, she loathed that her paper was crinkled, and she loathed that she wasn't sitting anywhere near her friends like she was so used to doing. Hermione detested new.

"Get used to your desk partner because they are going to be your cauldron partner for the next month. I have found that this is the easiest way to get most of you to pay attention. Yes, Miss Granger?" Snape snarled, looking at her raised hand.

Hermione hadn't even realized that she had risen her hand. She didn't know what to say but she knew that she wanted to argue with the professor. She couldn't be Draco Malfoy's partner for the next month. They would never get anything done because he's lazy.

"Wouldn't it be better for us to choose our own partners?" She offered as a suggestion.

Her voice wasn't as powerful as she imagined it was in her head. In fact, she cowered at how meek she sounded when she made her suggestion. She was usually full of vigor and intelligence. Now, she just sounded like a regular classmate. Hermione hated being ordinary almost as much as she hated new changes.

"No," He growled.

Hermione just looked down at her book in shame.

"Everyone to your cauldrons," He ordered.

The cowardly rush of Hermione's peers to the cauldrons just made Hermione dread it more. Malfoy was moving just as slow as she was but there was nothing that either of them could do about it even though they desperately wanted to.

"You two will be working on Wolfsbane," Snape instructed, striding past them.

Hermione groaned inwardly. Not only did she hate change and being ordinary but she hated easy things too. She didn't understand why he couldn't have given her a harder one or one that required a ton of steps. She needed something to occupy her thoughts so that she could control her irritation.

"You would think he would give you something a little more difficult, Granger," Malfoy teased, turning on the burner.

"Since I'm paired with you, I would say that the potion he assigned is a perfect match. Why give you more than five steps when you can't count that high?" Hermione insulted, turning the burner back off.

"Why are you turning off the burner?" He questioned, turning it back on.

"Because you're not following the steps!" Hermione snapped.

"Aren't we working on Wolfsbane?" He questioned, leaning casually against the cauldron space.

"Yes," Hermione answered simply.

"Wolfsbane? Aconite, Monkshood, Devil's Helmet, Queen of all Poisons?" Draco spouted off every nickname he could think of that he had heard a time or two.

"Correct. What's your point besides showing me that you know nicknames?" Hermione questioned, getting a little heated as she placed her hand on her hip.

"I've made this potion a time or two. I know the steps," Hermione ignored him and turned the burner back off.

"If we don't follow the steps in the exact order that it was intended then we could end up with a nasty olive colored goo in the bottom of our cauldron. I'm following the steps," Hermione informed, looking back at her book.

"Since you're such a know-it-all, Granger, what's the first step?" He asked, smirking as he watched her eyes scan over the instructions.

Hermione was irritated and she hated what she was about to do. She didn't like it when someone else was right but technically she hadn't been wrong. She didn't look at him but she could feel the smirk grow after she turned the burner back on.

"Like I said, Granger, I've done this a time or two," He said, turning his body towards the cauldron.

Hermione just rolled her eyes but she knew that it was going to be a very long class if she didn't at least attempt to cooperate. Even though she hated everything about this day she wasn't going to let some pompous ferret get the best of her. It might be the only satisfaction she has all day.

"That is not what you do next!" Hermione scolded.

"I'm telling you, Granger, I know what I'm doing!" Malfoy argued.

"This isn't the easiest of potions for everyone and if you do it wrong we're in serious trouble. Now hand over the ground mint!" She shouted.

"This is advanced potions, Granger! Of course it's not easy for everyone!" Malfoy snapped.

"Enough!" Snape shouted from the front of the classroom, glaring at the two students who had been arguing the entire time.

"If you can't manage to pull yourselves together for the rest of the period then I suggest you take your foul attitudes and remove them from my presence. Otherwise, I want you both to finish the potion in a civilized manor or I take twenty points from each house with a month's worth of detention. Is that understood?" He questioned harshly.

They both just nodded their heads and waited until Snape was out of earshot.

"I loathe you," Hermione hissed.

"Yeah? Good." Draco smirked.

"Detention!" Snape shouted from the other side of the room.

Hermione outwardly groaned at that moment and just stared at the platinum blonde nuisance she called her cauldron partner. Now they were detention partners and Hermione couldn't be any more furious.

She cursed him in her head and debated on going to buy a new quill.


End file.
